The award winning Baiter Sehat campaign is embarking on a third phase of public health promotion in the local BME community.

During its first two years, the Baiter Sehat project, by One Voice in partnership with the Council, has delivered community education initiatives about issues including forced marriage, mental health and well being, domestic violence, health checks, shisha smoking, cardiac rehabilitation and suicide.

Phase 3 will see Baiter Sehat focused on further community engagement around areas including dementia, organ donation, mental health and suicide and drugs and alcohol.

Zaheer Mahmud, the Operational Lead of One Voice, said:

“We accomplished so much in phase one and two of the Baiter Sehat campaign. This work must be reinforced and further implemented.

“Phase Three of the Baiter Sehat campaign will see us continue to educate the local communities and increase access to health and well-being provisions, and in this way, improve the outcome for the whole community.”

The Council’s Director of Public Health, Dominic Harrison said:

“The Baiter Sehat campaign has encouraged people to consider what they can do to improve their own health. I’m delighted that we are able to continue this partnership with One Voice .”

Jal Iqbal, Community Development Worker for Darwen Resource Centre, has worked alongside One Voice with the Mental Health awareness.

Jal said:

“The Baiter Sehat campaign has already induced crucial dialogue on important and very often taboo issues, including mental health and suicide, and made some very necessary breakthroughs within the local community.”

The Baiter Sehat project was recognised nationally last year when it received the Excellence in Health Award from the Department of Health.